IOWA CITY – Iowa (6-1) beat USC Upstate (2-7) Tuesday night inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena behind point guard Brock Harding’s 20 points.
The Hawkeyes reached the century mark for the first time this season.
The 110 points were the most points since playing North Dakota on November 7th, 2023 and tied for the sixth most in a game under Fran McCaffery.
Iowa had five players finish in double figures (and 12 different players score): Brock Harding 20, Owen Freeman 17, Drew Thelwell 15, Josh Dix 14, Riley Mulvey 11.
Iowa made its first seven field goals – 10 points by Freeman over the first 3:30 — and led 14-0 at the 16-minute media timeout.
The Hawkeyes made their first seven shots, 9-of-11 and 17-of-23 field goals over first 12 minutes and shot 56.4 percent (22-of-39) in the first half.
Iowa’s 55 points in the first half were the most scored in a half this season.
Iowa shot a season-best 60.6 percent (43-of-71) from the floor – the highest percentage since shooting 61.4 percent (43-of-70) against Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament on March 10, 2022.
The team made 12 3-point field goals – its fourth game with 10+ 3-pointers.
Harding tallied a career high for the second straight game, scoring 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting (2 3s) and had 10 assists and four steals.
It was his first double-double of the season and the second career double-double.
It was his second career 10+ assist game, tied for the ninth most in school history.
Harding has scored 39 points in Iowa’s last two games.
Harding is the fifth Hawkeye to score 20 points in a game this season.
Freeman had 17 points, six rebounds and two blocks, making 8-of-12 field goals.
He has been in double figures in all six games he has played in this season.
Dix scored 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting and had a career-high seven rebounds.
Thelwell reached double digits for the fourth game, scoring 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting. The 15 points are a Hawkeye high.
Redshirt junior Riley Mulvey scored a career-high 11 points, making all four field goals and 3-of-4 free throws.
Iowa had an 19-9 advantage in points off turnovers, forcing 19 TOs in the game.
The Hawkeyes had 24 assists on 43 field goals. Iowa has 20+ assists in four games this season.
Iowa had 12 steals, its fourth straight game with 10+ steals and fifth of the season.
Iowa has held all seven of its opponents under 50 percent shooting.
The Hawkeyes have won 94 of their last 100 nonconference home games dating back to 2012.
UP NEXT
Iowa returns to action Dec. 3, hosting Northwestern in its Big Ten Conference opener on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The game will begin at 6 p.m. (CT) and be streamed on Peacock.
